Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1887-06-22
.COLORADO REMINIsCENUE

! COLORADO RENINIsCE
We had laid up that night on the
Platte River. Mr.. Colby, the Sheriff Of
1Arapahoe County, had come down to
Ch " ranch in search Of jurors, and,
seeing q party Of Eastern tourists camp
ing near by, had walked over to make
our acquaintance. He was SO fresh and
breezy, and, withal, 50 genial and gen
tlemanly, he had such an air OF being
master Of the situation and himself that
we were all Of US glad when he accept
ed our commissaly's invitation to re-
main and sup with us.
a After tea we gaily assembled around
the roaring camp fire, and for awhile
wit and laughter winged the happy
time. But, as the twilight deepened,
the gusty talk blew over, silence fell up
on US with the night. Our shepherd,
for once unmindful Of the tender lambs
he had led forth into the wilderness,
was sitting astlide wagon tongue,
pensively greasing his boots. The COM
missary had folded the map of Colorado,
and, dumb as door nail, had slid him
self down from the bumpy log, on which
he had been for some time restless
sufferer. Even Philomel, the soul and
genius of our party, had, for a season,
turned the key upon wit and song.
Gracefully throned on her hand-trunk,
she watched, in silence, the bright and
happy sparks that danced carmagnole
as they rose, light-footed from the or
ange flames. All was quiet upon the
Platte; the tongues of the wagons were
not more silent than ours.
The Sheriff of Arapahoe was the first
to break the spell. Il started in to tell
you," he said, '.the true story of Jim
while we were at supper, but I struck
a snag in the shape of fapjack and
didn't get on with it.
"It's not too late for it yet," said the
commissary. :
SWELL" continued Mr.. Colby,
'.twenty years ago I was stopping at
Hard-up, CAL, trying to dig my fortune
out OF mine there. In the town was
one-horse lawyer named Smith John
son, who was about the biggest sot in
all the diggin's round. And Smith had
a son named Jim-a haired, freckled-
face little 10-year old scamp who was
the terror of all the hen roosts and gar
dens in the town. heway I won Jim's
heart was this: I had a water melon
patch that was, if you'll forgive the
figure, the apple of my eye. One even
ing l walked forth my garden for to
view and what should I see in the mid
die of it but that skeesics, Jim, letting
into one of my water melons as lively
as mole. Up came in the rear and
gathered up Jim by the waist-band,
Whereat, finding his little game was
blocked, he commenced to wriggle and
howl. -. ="
".Let me co. said he. i won't
come here no more. Please let me go,
Mr., Colby -",~
"'Oh, you young scamp said I.
I've got you now and I think I'll keep
you. I find it's very safe to punish
these bad boys that are so ready to be
good when they're caught. Do you
know what I'm going to do with your
said I giving him final shake and set
ting him up on his pins. I'm going
to send you to jail
"Oh, please, Mr.. Colby, give me a
whippin' an let me CO.
"'No, haven't any right to whip
you, but I'm obliged by the law to send
you to jail, and l can tell you a Jail is
an awful place. There's rats there!'
! "'Oh-o,' groaned Jim.
| "sAnd sometimes in the night, they.
gnaw off your toes. 81
".Please, Mr.. Colby whined Jim.
i"'And your nose,' said I, 'and you
have to 60 to bed without any candle,
and you can't play poker, and they do
o0J oA"o VIC Suooeo "a WHO PCOPAO oua0
were there before and got hung for
stealing watermelons, come back at
midnight and make dreadful noise.
Oh, I can tell you it's no fun to go
to jail ~ ..~,,
! "Well! after I had chaffed the little
scamp long enough, I gave him a SER
mon on the moral law and let him 20
with nothing worse than fright but, af-
ter that, strange to say, Jim and Iwere
cheek by jowl. r.. J..
Y.'Some time after the watermelon
fracas," continued Mr.. Colby, II was
going up the gulch to Shooptown when
I saw, on the side of the hill, the
tracks of the Vigilance Committed.
They were three road agents that had
been tried and hung the day before and
left suspended from the branch of a
tree to strike terror into the hearts of
of evil doors. Well, there was mob
of boys round this monument of JUS
tice and they were diyerting themselves
with running down hill and swinging
theluckless road agents to the breeze,
,nl, al